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case study

As we’ve learned from Mark Twight, trainer for the actors from 300, “appearance is a consequence of fitness.”

Diet:

While I did switch to a 80/20 Paleo Diet for a while, ever since my Hashimoto’s diagnosis I’ve been doing an extremely strict auto immune Paleo diet. I basically eat meats, veggies, and berries. The auto immune part of Paleo cuts out nuts and seeds, nightshades (tomatoes, peppers), and eggs. I do have milk and butter, but only whole and organic grass fed. I don’t do any other dairy (like cheese) at all. I don’t even cheat with gluten or soy anymore, no matter what. I feel SO much better since adopting this new diet.

Every Sunday (or whatever works, but usually its Sunday) I cook a few pounds of boneless skinless chicken breast. I then portion it out and keep them in ziploc bags. If I don’t have time for that, you can get all natural precooked sausage (both chicken and pork) that works just as well as a “bring to work” meat.

5AM: pre-workout: (first thing in the morning) – protein shake. (nothing special). Its not paleo, and i love every sip of it. Then I go and work out. If I go to the gym with a full stomach, I will not leave with a full stomach.

7:30AM: on my way to work: apple or pear.

9:30AM: sweet potato with cinnamon. I keep them at work, and cut them up, throw it in the microwave for 5 minutes with cinnamon. Comes out amazing.

Another protein shake somewhere in here between breakfast and lunch.

11:45AM-12PM: lunch: two of the bags of chicken I precooked and a bag of the steamfresh vegetables. The entire bag, its like 3.5 servings of vegetables. My favorite is broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots.

2-3 snacks in the afternoon. Could be one of these: Apple with almond butter, bell pepper (I eat them like apples… I’m weird), carrots (they even make carrots cut like chips), bags of chicken (yes, those bags of chicken I consider a snack as well, not just a meal), a zucchini (yes, plain, raw, uncooked), celery with almond butter and raisins, strawberries, frozen mixed berries.

Right now I’m focused mainly on strength, doing a crazy Russian squat program where I squat heavy 4x a week, working other big lifts in around that. I try to get in conditioning, in the form of something like sprints, burpees, or sled pushes a few times a week as well. I’ve also been swimming a lot, but that’s more for fun, recovery, and meditation.

Staying Hungry:

I guess I never reached a point where I felt like I was content with where I was at. I always want more, and there’s always something new to learn. People will tell me that once they reach, say, a 315 lb squat they will be satisfied. But to me, I’m thinking, “Why? Why wouldn’t you want to try to squat 316 lbs next time?”

I have this concept of hitting a PR every day, no matter what, and that could mean anything from lifting 1 more pound, doing 1 more rep, or finishing 1 second faster. I hate the idea of being “comfortable,” because if I’m not pushing out to the edge and trying to do better, then I’m not growing.

I think because my overall goal, sport specific aside, is to be able to do whatever I want to do whenever I want to, without warning, without my body holding me back.

And by that I mean if a friend calls me tomorrow and says, “I found a secret treehouse in the middle of the woods, but we need to hike a gigantic mountain and bike 50 miles to get there,” I want to be able to say “I’m in” without hesitation. So I always want to push my body’s limits. Plus, it’s fun.